The only response President Bush is offering us to the threat of Islamic terrorism is a long war. Deepak Chopra suggests a different course:
In the wake of the thwarted plot to explode bombs on flight from Britain to the U.S., several commentators echoed President Bush's slogan that fighting terrorism is going to be a long war, the defining struggle of this generation. No one mentioned striving for a long peace with the Arab world, which will also take a generation. The roots of terrorism are not insane. Real conditions gave rise to a huge disaffected segment of Muslims, mostly young and male. From northern Africa across the entire Middle East to Pakistan, there has been a population boom without much hope that any child will receive adequate education, except in the Koran, or adequate work. The governments are either militaristic or dominated by reactionary royal families.Read entire article
2 comments:
I cannot recall ever reading a dumber column in my entire life (well, maybe an article about OJ's innocence).
"A Long Peace" - come on,
1. 9-11
2. London subway bombings,
3. Bombings in Spain
4. All the pre-9/11 terrorist activities...
It is catagorically impossible to have 'peace' with someone that continues to punch you in the nose!
Now if you want to accept terrorism and say that allowing terrorism is better than spending money to fight it, or if you want to say that we will accept death as a consequence of allowing terrorism - well, now that would be a position.
I would have to say that that position would be somewhat insane, but at least it is a position. But to say, 'Have a Long Peace' with someone who has a stated goal of killing you - now that is nothing short of INSANE!
Jim,
What is truely insane is, in response to a problem, to continue doing something which not only does not solve the problem but actually makes it worse.
For 3 years we have been trying Bush's "long war" military solution. After 2400 American military deaths and tens of thousands of Iraqi dead, billions of American dollars spent, daily life for Iraqis is in almost every respect worse than before the invasion and the country is descending into all-out Civil War. We are creating anti-American terrorists rather than eliminating them. As Dr. Phil would ask, "How is that working out for you?"
Post a Comment